Sonic Glossary

Non-imitative Polyphony
A musical texture featuring two or more equally prominent, simultaneous melodic lines, those lines being dissimilar in shape and sound.

Fig 1: Roman de Fauvel MS
Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale, f.fr.146

Polyphony is usually divided into two main types: imitative and non-imitative. Either the various melodic lines in a polyphonic passage may be completely independent in their rhythm and contour, or they may sound similar to one other.

When the various melodic parts of a polyphonic texture are dissimilar, the polyphony they produce is non-imitative. Non-imitative polyphony can be found in music from a variety of cultures and time periods, and it is particularly prominent in Western vocal music from the beginning of the 13th century to approximately the middle of the 15th--in other words from the later medieval period to the middle of the Renaissance.

Non-imitative Polyphony in the Late Middle Ages

Composers from these earlier times were especially fond of combining equally independent musical parts in a non-imitative polyphonic texture. Here, in a 14th-century motet written by Philippe de Vitry, the practice is taken to an extreme, as three different voices with completely different sets of words and musical material interact. The complete independence of the lines is emphasized even further by the frequent use of different speeds in each part. The motion ranges from long, sustained notes in one voice to faster, chattering rhythms in the others.

[Example 1: Philippe de Vitry: Floret cum vana gloria/Florens vigor/Neuma]

But different, simultaneously performed texts are not indispensable for non-imitative polyphony, although they may make the texture easier to recognize. Works that have the same words

Fig 2: Renaissance singers
Sculpt. Luca della Robbia

in all their parts and even instrumental pieces may count as non-imitative polyphony, so long as two or more of the lines are sufficiently distinct to command attention from the listener.

Such features apply to this section from a Mass by the 15th-century composer Guillaume Dufay.

[Example 2: Dufay: Mass Se la face ay pale: Gloria "Cum sancto spiritu"]

Non-imitative Polyphony in Modern Popular Music

Furthermore, non-imitative polyphony is not confined solely to medieval or Renaissance music; the following two selections demonstrate non-imitative polyphony in popular Western music.

Original Dixieland Jazzband

Fig 3: K. Oliver's Creole Jazz Band

In this example, played by Louis Armstrong's Hot Five, several members of the group improvise simultaneous variations on a popular tune, while the remaining players accompany them, supplying rhythmic and harmonic support to the extemporized melodies.

[Example 3: Louis Armstrong's Hot Five, "My Heart"]

Lastly, in a selection from a piece written and performed by the Beatles, two complementary melodies are introduced separately during the course of the song. Each of these has a completely different melody and words.

Fig 4: The Beatles recording Day Tripper (1965)

[Example 4: The Beatles, "I've Got a Feeling" from Let it Be: (a) first melody; (b) second melody]

Then, in order to achieve a sense of climax to conclude the piece, both of the performers finish by singing their different melodies at the same time. The resulting texture is thus polyphonic, since we are forced to concentrate on both of the melodic lines, but the differing shapes of the melodies render the polyphony non-imitative.

[Example 5: The Beatles, "I've Got a Feeling": two melodies combined.]

 

Summary:

  • Polyphony may be imitative or non-imitative, depending on how closely the various musical lines resemble each other.
  • If the individual lines show little or no resemblance to each other, the polyphony they produce is non-imitative.
  • Both types of polyphony may also mix with or succeed each other in a musical passage.
  • Non-imitative polyphony can be found in music from a variety of cultures and time periods.

 

Copyright © Columbia University,
Visual & Sound Materials from the Gabe M. Wiener Music & Arts Library of Columbia University
Imitative polyphony written by: Thomas Payne
Recording & Mixing: Bradford Garton & Terry Pender
Narration: Thomas Payne
Technology & Design: Maurice Matiz